C-Level Executives Lack Confidence in Their Cybersecurity

The data also suggests that these consumers have reason to be concerned. Nearly half (47 percent) say they have been notified at some point that their information has been compromised by a breach, and of those respondents, another 47 percent say that even after being notified, they still did not feel well-informed or reassured that their data would be safe.

ThreatTrack Security recently published the results of a study that reveal broad concern among enterprises about the vulnerability of their systems against cyber attacks. More than two-thirds of executives are concerned their companies will not be able to stop such threats, and one in five say their biggest concern is not knowing whether an attack is under way. However, these fears seem to have had little influence in encouraging executives to protect their networks by adopting best practices in cyber defense technologies and specialized personnel. Forty-two percent report not having an incident response team in place, and nearly half (47 percent) report that they are not making use of advanced malware analysis tools.

At a time when Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), targeted attacks, zero-day threats and other sophisticated malware have become profitable businesses for malware writers and cyber criminals, many large enterprises are still struggling with how to protect themselves. It is especially telling that, according to the study, 97 percent of enterprises with annual security budgets over $1 million still report concerns that they are vulnerable to malware attacks and cyber espionage tactics.

“Enterprises are facing an unprecedented surge of highly targeted and sophisticated threats that are designed to evade traditional malware detection technologies,” said ThreatTrack Security Chief Executive Officer Julian Waits, Sr. “The only way to battle these threats effectively is with a combination of highly skilled cybersecurity professionals armed with the strongest malware analysis tools available. Companies that don’t employ the right mix of people, process and technology are making themselves excellent targets for the cyber bad guys.”

The independent blind survey of 200 C-level executives at U.S.-based enterprises was conducted by Opinion Matters on behalf of ThreatTrack Security in June 2013. The results highlight the opinions of CSO, CIO, CEO and CTO executives related to the cybersecurity practices of their companies.

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